WHY ARE YE FEARFUL?

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 05, Issue 71, 29 June 1942, Page 2

WHY ARE YE FEARFUL?

HAVE WE TRIED CHRISTIANITY?

Bv Laurence .Hope. We worn talking about the war the other evening—mysel 1\ an old I'riend 1 had known in South Africa, -md his pretty young wife, whom he had met in London. They had boon in London during ?he blitz :>.nd, although they had eseaped unhiT't. they had looked upon many scenes of horror, suffering, and destruction. The man had become a little biL- • er. H* had lost' faith in "the good imrpose e? God.'" ll's confessed to being <a little bewildered: her mind assailed by doubt —sh" felt that she was groping - : n the dark. Up to the time of this writing, the war had not come to S3 r dney. We were looking out e.ver the Harbour. It was one of those perfect nighl.s we often get here —pleasantly cool, after a day of gorgeous sunshine. The moon was riding high—a silver orescent on a sky of dark velvet. The Southern Cross blazed a trail of glo>ry. Lights twinkled from the distant shore. The air was still and quiet. I, thought-: "What a beautiful world it is"—and into my mind and heart crept a feeling of gratitude to the Great Giver who had spread his beauties with such lavish hand. It seemed incredible that not many miles away men were killing each other, women and children were suffering, and dying, and God's beautiful world was becoming a hell . . -

If Testing Time Comes My friend broke- into my reverie, "A;- y-H) know," lie said, "1 was brought up t» believe in the Christian God, What f have seen satisfies mo that Christianity has failed." 1 am afraid there are quite a aiimbe:- of people who are beginning to think that to-day. I am not blaming him. I am not criticising him. It is easy to- sit on a peaceful verandah on one of Sydney's perfect star-lit nights—with war still no .more than a distant murmur—and hand out eoanfortable platitudes about''the goodness of God and the impregnability of one's faith. But if faith goes when it is assailed, it is no faith, i am no hero, but I hope that, if the testing time comes, my faith will carry mo Lhrough. Surely it is in times of stress and danger and disaster that we need faith. If we lose, faith, we lose everything—even the will to fight. I confess that without faith 1 would often find the cares and burdens of eveiyday life in normal times too heavy to bear. With faith I a.m not afraid of them. I think the people of London must have hail faith to enable them to stand up to the blitz. But this man had looked upon the face of death. He had seen the horror of Avar. Ha Avas shaken. No, 1 could not blame himI said to him: "You are satisfied that Christianity has failed. I think sve ought to give Christianity a trial before we say it is a failure."' "Why," he said, "for 2000 years—" "Yes,"' I broke in, "it has been preached. But has it been lived?" I meant just that. j Humbug and Hypocrisy We all know there are noD'.e, Godfearing men and women in the world. We know that Christian belief has inspired and set in motion many movements for the benefit of mankind; that Christian love- lias ulJcA'iated poA T erty and suffering. We also knew that the Avorld is full of greed, sel/ishness, hatred, cruelty, uncharitableness.. That is what creates poA-erty and suffering. We know, toe, that there is a 10l of humbug and hypocrisy—even among the Christian churches. If tin* so-called Christian nations were really Christian, this present horror would not have come to the worldI am not going to attempt to explain the Avar. I am ncit going to suggest it is a punishment for sin. But I do say that Ave have brought it upon ourselves and that Ave have no right to turn round and blame "he A 1 m i.g h ty for it. He gave man a beautiful world. Man has befouled it"Can you still believe in a beneficent all-loving Creator Avhen He allows all these dreadful things to happen?'" asked my friend's Avife. Can wn blame upon God man's inhumanity to man? We have been been given minds c,f our own. We lire reasoning, thinking beings.. We have freedom of choice between good find evil. If Ave kill each other, shall we blame God for it?

I believe Britain and her Allies are fight'.ng the forces of evil; that i his is a just and righteous war. We must tight it because the high ideals 5 -vc; stand far—and which we know to be true and right—are menaced. It is right to light for truth, justice, liberty. But we've got to put our own house in order. WeVe got to love those ideals, not pay lip service to them. When victory comes, we've got to see to it that those 'deals are realised. "We are 110 longer a Christian people," said the Rev. W. N. Lock at the Slate Methodist Conference, held recently in Sydney. "Wo. cannot hope fo,r real progress and improvement until we realise that God is the granite foundation upon which any stable social order must rest. All other ground is sinking sand." Christianity tailed? Before we can say that, we must make the Chdstian world Christian. Christ's greatest commandment vvas: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." It. is the commandment me,st persistently ignored—inside and outside the Christian church. Do you ever think wliat it implies? It means the end of hatred, cruelty, selfishness, unkindness! If that commandment were universally obeyed, we should have the perfect world. Just that.